Prevalence and sites of pain in remote-living older Aboriginal Australians, and associations with depressive symptoms and disability

Abstract

Background: Pain is a growing public health problem associated with significant health and functional implications. Limited data exist for Aboriginal Australians. Aims: To describe the prevalence, severity and sites of pain, analgesic use and associated factors, including depression and disability, in remote-living Aboriginal Australians. Methods: Cross-sectional study of 263 Aboriginal Australians aged ≥45 years from six remote Indigenous communities and the town of Derby in the Kimberley region of Western Australia between 2011 and 2013. Pain was assessed using a culturally adapted pain scale. Factors associated with pain were investigated with binary logistic regression. Results: One hund..